Stuck
by a-heavyheart-tocarry
Summary: She had watched as he'd grown older. Gotten married. Had kids. And not with her. How many times had they talked about it? They had everything planned. It had been an inevitable future for them. AU. Some Annabeth/Percy and Percy/Reyna. Oneshot.


**AUTHOR'S NOTE: So this one kind of killed me to write, but it's been a headcanon of mine for a _while_. It's short, but I like it. I received it as a prompt from a friend.**

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><p>A hundred years was a blink when you were immortal.<p>

Annabeth's days blurred together, insants and moments and memories blurring together in a hazy mess she didn't think much of that often. She kept her eyes firmly on the present, on the next monster, the next challenge, the next target.

The past hurt too much to think about.

At least the Hunters understood her feelings. Most of them had joined for the same reason she had— broken hearts or lost loved ones. They wanted to feel powerful. Strong. Capable. They didn't want to succumb to the crushing loss of whatever had driven them to their choice. To be perfectly honest, that's why they were so hostile to most people they met. The majority had joined because they were hurt; they never wanted to be hurt again. And in a way they were selfish, but none of them ever brought that up. Especially around Lady Artemis. They were her pride and joy. They would not disappoint her. They had left their old, mortal ways behind.

Of course, none of them could ever truly forget, Annabeth included. Years had broken down many of her memories, left them faded or forgotten, but some she just couldn't let go of. No matter how much she wanted to.

He was one of them.

Yes, they'd gone their separate ways after the war with the giants. No one had expected it, but it had happened. He'd gone and gotten together with the dark haired girl who had had her heart broken by someone else as well; Annabeth had joined the Hunters. And she'd watched. And it hurt. It always hurt. Thalia had told her Hunters always were stuck on one thing from their mortal lives, often the thing that drove them to joining the group. Something painful.

Annabeth was stuck on Percy.

_It's not like I can do much about it now, _she thought bitterly. She had watched, in her forever-eighteen body, as he'd grown older. Gotten married. Had kids. And not with her. How many times had they talked about it? They had everything planned. Their kids, their wedding… It had been an inevitable future for them. But obviously the Fates had had something else in mind. Annabeth had gone to his children's birthdays and awards days and graduations and had plastered on a false smile and tried to be happy for them. And he had tried to be happy for her. But they were still only orbiting around each other, lost words and moments never acted on. More than once when Annabeth was around, she saw the knowing look in Reyna's eyes. Or Grover's. Or Thalia's. Everyone knew what was going on, but they didn't want to say anything.

So they never did.

The blonde curled her knees to her chest, sitting with her back against the trunk of Thalia's pine tree. He'd asked for it to be here, under the shade of the pine needles and overlooking the hill that led to his former home. And how could anyone have denied him? He was the former savior of the gods. He'd saved Olympus's ass time and time again. Chiron and Mr. D couldn't override this small favor.

At Annabeth's and Thalia's request, the Hunters visited every year.

Gray eyes watched her sisters-in-arms milling about the campers; things had become certainly less tense since they were visiting more often, but fights did break out often. She saw a familiar dark head of hair approach the hill, and wave at her. "Annabeth!"

She sighed. She couldn't refuse Thalia's request, as much as she wanted to be left alone. They were leaving today. The Hunters were ready to move on.

Turning towards the gray, carved stone next to her, she had to fight to keep tears away. "I'll see you next year, then." Her voice cracked, and she blinked hard as she leaned forward and kissed the top of the headstone.

"Bye Seaweed Brain."


End file.
